(1) Field
The disclosed methods and systems relate generally to delivering content over a computer network, and more particularly to providing content related to live action feeds controlled over the network by network users.
(2) Description of Relevant Art
The Internet provides a platform for allowing the distribution of information and data such as multimedia data. Accordingly, one Internet application includes broadcasting multimedia entertainment and other live action programming. Several internet websites exist that allow users to obtain live action programming that can be streamed throughout the internet to Internet users. These websites can be integrated with one or more cameras, otherwise known as “webcams,” that can be located at locations to capture a particular field of view. Internet users having an internet browser with the necessary plug-ins or software applications, can receive the broadcast image data from the fixed camera locations. For example, websites can include points of views for major landmarks or other central locations in various cities to allow internet users to view the weather or scenery in the camera field of view. Other websites can utilize the fixed field of view to capture, for example, commonly congested traffic areas. Unfortunately, in the latter example, there could be a traffic problem at another area on a given day, that is not within the field of view. The information or data provided from the fixed field of view therefore may not provide sufficient information to a user on a given day. In other applications, a camera can be used to view or monitor a moving subject. If the subject moves outside the camera field of view, the monitoring user may not be able to perform the monitoring function. Some systems provide limited control of camera motion, but such control can be particular to a specific individual, user, and/or network location or device, and such control can also be extremely limited to discrete camera movements. Furthermore, many multimedia broadcasts include significant delays between image updates, resulting in choppy broadcasts that can appear to be, or may be, a string of static images that are presented with a discernible delay between successive images.